News Matters

A Brief Introduction

My name is Rudi Theunis. As a young boy I was already fascinated by photography. At an age of eight, I regularly took the pocket camera from my parents and photographed (without their knowledge) my surroundings. My mother was often surprised to discover that, once again, so many landscapes without people were between her newly developed slides. When I was 12, I got an Olympus Trip 35 as a birthday present. That was my first 35 millimeter (compact) camera, and also the beginning of a true love with photography. After earning a bachelor’s degree in computer science, I decided to direct my photography in the right direction. I was already shooting in black and white and had my own dark room (yes, that was during the analog times), but I had a need to perfect me. At that time, the Internet was yet to become available, and the alternatives were limited to reading books or magazines, or training. I decided to follow classes at the Academy of Fine Arts in Hasselt. This training was super and gave me a good basis for a good composition, studio lighting, and technical knowledge of the analogue photographic processes. After this training, I started as a freelance photographer. My first assignments were mainly event and portrait photography (weddings, communions, …). Over the years I have evolved through travel photography to still life and product photography. On January 1, 2016, I converted my company “Rudi Theunis Photographer” into “Product Imaging Experts”. As the name should suggest, I want to focus on what I like and do best: product photography in the broadest sense of the word. This includes the following: food photography, product photography, interior (architecture) photography and corporate photography.

What is Rockin’ Rotterdam?

Rockin’ Rotterdam is a photographic project that will start at the end of November. The goal is “to take one creative photo in every street in Rotterdam”. The project is organized by the BENELUX chapter of the Royal Photographic Society (RPS). However, you don’t have to be a member of the RPS to participate. Everyone who is running around in Rotterdam with a camera, or even a smart phone, can submit their recently taken images.

Meet ups

Meet ups (photo walks), where everybody is welcome, will be organized on a regular basis. They are mostly scheduled on the last Sunday of the month. The first meetup is scheduled on 27 November 2016 at 10:30 near the metro station Blaak. All planned dates, and more info, can be found on the Rockin’ Rotterdam website (http://www.rockinrotterdam.eu/index). These meet ups are not only interesting because of the photo opportunities, but they are also are a great moment to network with fellow photographers.

Biyearly International Photo Festival

The summer of 2017 in Overpelt (Belgium) will be devoted to photography. Better still, it will be devoted to portrait photography. Starting next year, the village Overpelt will organize an international biennial of photography. It will do this with the support of Cultureel Centrum Palethe, Nationale Vereniging van Beroepsfotografen and Centrum voor Beeldexpressie. The title is “Lens op de Mens” (Spotlight on People).

The first edition is all about portrait photography and is planned to start on June 17, 2017 and will continue until August 31 2017. A selection of at least 500 photographs made by Belgian and international photographers will be shown outside in the streets and inside on specific locations. The initiative was taken by Carine Van Gerven; a colleague photographer, fellow villager, and councilor for cultural affairs in Overpelt.

If you are passionate by portrait photography (either professional or not) and you want to show your creations to the world, than you may register on this website: www.fotofestivaloverpelt.be. You can enter until January 9, 2017. If your images are selected for one of the exhibitions, your pictures will also be judged for one of the awards.

Let’s participate and make this a special event. See you next summer in Overpelt!